Birds damaged planes at SFO 45 times since 1990

AIRPORT SAFETY

Published 4:00 am, Saturday, April 25, 2009

Photo: Lance Iversen, The Chronicle

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A pair of Canada Geese grazes on the Bay Trail in Millbrae as planes taxi out to runways at SFO. The FAA, for the first time, has released a comprehensive database showing the number of bird strikes at airports. less

A pair of Canada Geese grazes on the Bay Trail in Millbrae as planes taxi out to runways at SFO. The FAA, for the first time, has released a comprehensive database showing the number of bird strikes at ... more

Photo: Lance Iversen, The Chronicle

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Rescue crews secure a US Airways flight 1549 floating in the water after it crashed into the Hudson River January 15, 2009 in New York City. Detailed figures from the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) show a doubling in collisions with wildlife over the last decade, with 8,758 between January and November 2008. Gulls and other seabirds most frequently strike, followed by doves and pigeons, starlings, then raptors and waterfoul, according to statistics. But as both airline fleets and bird flocks expand, pilots face an extraordinary array of wildlife through their windscreens, including eagles, bats, kestrels, cuckoos, egrets, snow geese, ducks -- and, on the ground, even alligators. Last year, 98 accidents resulted in serious damage and the trend over the years has been for that proportion to diminish, the data shows. However, the crash landing of a US Airways Airbus in New York's Hudson River this January, after geese knocked out both engines, served as a chilling reminder of the threat. FILES/Chris McGrath/Getty Images/AFP (Photo credit should read Chris McGrath/AFP/Getty Images) less

Rescue crews secure a US Airways flight 1549 floating in the water after it crashed into the Hudson River January 15, 2009 in New York City. Detailed figures from the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) show a ... more

Photo: Chris McGrath, AFP/Getty Images

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Birds feed in a Millbrae marsh as a plane taxis out to a runway at SFO. The FAA has released a comprehensive database showing the number of bird strikes.

Birds feed in a Millbrae marsh as a plane taxis out to a runway at SFO. The FAA has released a comprehensive database showing the number of bird strikes.

Photo: Lance Iversen, The Chronicle

Birds damaged planes at SFO 45 times since 1990

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Two Northern California airports - including San Francisco International - rank near the top of a federal list released Friday that tallies collisions in which airplanes were substantially damaged by birds and other wildlife.

San Francisco International had 45 incidents from 1990 through November 2008, making it the airport with the third-highest number of incidents nationwide where wildlife damaged an airplane.

Sacramento International Airport placed second - with 56 reported instances of damage from wildlife strikes. That was well behind New York's John F. Kennedy Airport, which recorded the highest number of incidents at 83.

Oakland International and Mineta San Jose International each reported 15 wildlife strikes resulting in substantially damaged airplanes.

Officials at both SFO and the Sacramento airport pointed out that the number of wildlife strikes involved an infinitesimal percentage of flights, and that nobody - aside from the birds - was injured or killed in the accidents.

"I have no problems putting any member of my family on a flight in or out of SFO," said Mike McCarron, an SFO spokesman.

Both airports have physical and geographical factors making them more susceptible to bird strikes, including locations on the Pacific Flyway, the principal north-south migratory route for birds.

Sacramento's airport, located 12 miles northwest of downtown, is surrounded by agricultural land, including rice fields and wildlife habitat. San Francisco International borders the bay, and is about 7 miles from the Pacific Ocean.

"We're a major coastal airport under a major flyway," said McCarron. "So it's no surprise we have a higher number of bird strikes."

Both McCarron and Sacramento airport spokeswoman Karen Doron said their airports have aggressive and accurate reporting systems even though reporting of wildlife strikes to the FAA is done on a voluntary basis by pilots, airlines, airports and other observers.

Federal aviation officials released the bird strike database, which also counts incidents involving other wildlife, on Friday, after media requests. The release stems from the January incident in which pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger of Danville ditched a US Airways jet in the Hudson River after bird strikes knocked out both of its engines.

But the statistics could come with a flock of cautionary asterisks for anyone hoping to reach grand conclusions. In addition to being voluntary, the data do not take into account the volume of traffic at the airports, and much of it is incomplete. For instance, Sacramento has about 417 flights landing or taking off per day, compared to 1,000 at SFO and 740 at Oakland.

"I caution anyone against comparing one airport's numbers with another airport's numbers," said Ian Gregor, an FAA spokesman for the West Coast. "Airports that are diligent in reporting often have more strikes than those that are less diligent."

U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood has said he is considering mandatory reporting. Gregor said the FAA is also looking at other ways to make the data more reliable and comparable.

The FAA requires all commercial airports to have wildlife management plans - strategies to keep birds and other animals away from aircraft and runways. Most involve using noisemaking devices to shoo birds from around the airport and eliminating habitat by cutting grass short, removing fruit-bearing vegetation and drying up standing water.

"We do everything we can to discourage birds from congregating near the airport," said McCarron.

At Sacramento, that involved shooting birds as a last resort, until the practice ran afoul of state Fish and Game officials, Gregor said. A bill that would permit the airport to resume the use of lethal force on avian trespassers is wending its way through the state Legislature.

While aviation officials cautioned against drawing too many conclusions from the bird strike data, they said the statistics make it clear that bird strikes can be dangerous but are far from common.

"Despite what happened to US Air Flight 1549, these are extremely rare events," said Gregor. "The chance of experiencing any kind of bird strike is extremely remote."

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